New Dementia Film Featuring The Butterfly Model

“We Are Family”

I am so proud of my friends Corinne Maunder and Cathy Greenblat who created this film, “We Are Family.” Dr David Sheard is the creator of the Butterfly Model featured in this film. Corinne is the Director, Producer and Camera Operator and she owns Fire Films. Cathy is the Executive Producer and Photographer for the film. These two amazing women have done several exceptional films on dementia care which can be found at this website: SIDE BY SIDE: LOVE AND JOY IN DEMENTIA CAREA MULTIMEDIA PROJECT.

I am looking forward to interviewing all of them on Alzheimer’s Speaks Radio in the near future, so get your questions ready!

A Big Thank You to Oprah and Her Team

I can’t put into words how humbled and honored I am to be named one of fourteen people, picked by Oprah and her team as a 2018, “Health Hero.” Being mentioned twice in one year in the “O” magazine is just down right amazing. Last time, it was for the Memory Cafe’s. This time, for Alzheimer’s Speaks Radio and Dementia Chats educational video interviews with people who are living with a diagnosis of dementia.

I want everyone involved with the radio show and/or Dementia Chats to know I share this recognition with them. Everything Alzheimer’s Speaks does is about raising voice and collaboration for the betterment of the worlds dementia care. So if you have been a guest on Alzheimer’s Speaks Radio, an expert on Dementia Chats, someone who has joined the conversation by calling in, using the chat box, emailing, texting, using twitter, responding to or sharing a blog post, please know none of this would be possible without you. From the bottom of my heart I “THANK YOU!”

For this article, they sent me to a 4 hour photo shot… what an experience! I have a new appreciation for models, photographers and make up artists. I need to also thank Chad Holder the Photographer and Terra Hinrichs the Hair and Makeup Artist. What a great team to work with.

Love Lives Here is a new documentary short film that explores how US-based memory care provider Silverado gives life to residents by embracing a core operating philosophy of love and recognizing the value of the human spirit.

The 25 minute film, released on March 14, 2016, is the third installment in the documentary series Side by Side: Love and Joy in Dementia Care, produced and directed by award-winning Australian filmmaker Corinne Maunder and executive produced by American sociologist/photographer Dr Cathy Greenblat.

“Silverado has a unique approach that sees them getting people to do things that the top neurologists in the world said was impossible, which presented an ideal opportunity to create a thought provoking piece about dementia care,” says Dr Greenblat.

The film was shot at four different Silverado communities in California, and features interviews with associates (staff), residents, family members, and dementia-care experts, along with photographs and video footage of the day-to-day life of residents at Silverado.

“By reducing medications and focusing on a more holistic approach to care, residents can thrive, while maintaining their sense of self and dignity,” says Ms Maunder.

“All of us at Silverado are committed to changing the way the world cares for and perceives people with cognitive decline – a vision we established at our founding 20 years ago. So when we were approached as the inspiration for Love Lives Here, I was both humbled and thrilled by the opportunity to share our knowledge to make a positive impact on more lives,” says Loren Shook, Chairman, CEO and Co-Founder, Silverado. “It was a tremendous honor for us to participate in a project led by such a talented team of filmmakers. If there’s one message I’d like families to take away, it’s that a dementia diagnosis does not mean the end of a meaningful and purposeful life.”

“Life can change, but life doesn’t stop when you move into Silverado,” Laura Printy, Administrator, Silverado, explains in the film.

“To create one community like this is an achievement, but for Silverado to instill and nurture this culture of love across their 30+ memory care communities throughout the United States, is truly something remarkable,” says Dr Greenblat.

Dr Greenblat has been photographing at Silverado communities since 2001 and her books Alive with Alzheimer’s (2004) and (Love, Loss and Laughter2012) both feature photos from many of Silverado’s communities. Her photographs have been exhibited in galleries in North America, Europe, Asia, Australia and the Middle East including the World Health Organization, the United Nations and the US National Academy of Sciences.

Ms Maunder, initially inspired by her grandmother’s diagnosis of Alzheimer’s, has produced over two dozen short films and educational videos about dementia since 2013, with more currently in production.

Dr Greenblat says, “The vision for Side by Side is to create a multimedia resource for individuals and organizations to learn about better practice person-centered dementia care.”

The first two films in the series, Finding the Why(Starrett Lodge, Uniting, Australia) and It Takes a Community (Arcare Helensvale, Australia), have enjoyed considerable success and have been used in universities, professional forums and care facilities around the world.

“The beautiful thing about this series of films is that the creative process has been very organic,” says Ms Maunder. “There are no scripts, no marketing departments, no one telling me what messages to push. I’m free to capture and present everything just as I see it, which makes it very authentic. These are real stories about real people.”

Looking For An Incredible Presentation For Your Next Event?

Reach out to Ms. Maunder and Dr. Greenblat. They both are available to present the film at conferences, training sessions, fundraising programs and other screenings.

My Friend and Colleague

Cathy Greenblat & Her Team

Hit Another Home run!

“It Takes A Community”

If you are looking for a great example of person centered care,

you have found it with Cathy’s film series.

It Takes A Community, was filmed at Arcare Helensvale, in Queensland, Australia is one of a series of short films directed by Corinne Maunder of Fire Films that presents a fresh perspective on aged care. This moving film looks at Arcare Helensvale’s unique relationship-centred approach to celebrating and supporting old age. Strategy and Innovation Manager, Daniella Greenwood examples their philosophy and you to I’m sure will be touched at a heart level when she speaks as I was. Soo Borson, MD, Geriatric Psychiatrist and Dementia Specialist also discussing the two major parts to Arcares success.

If you missed the the first film in the series, ‘Finding the Why: Enabling Active Participation in Life in Aged Care’, produced with Sociologist/Photographer Professor Cathy Greenblat, was created earlier in 2014. This film features the work of Colin McDonnell, Care Service Manager of Starrett Lodge of the Uniting Aged Care Organization.

Together, these films and more, will form part of Cathy’s upcoming project, ‘Side by Side: Love and Joy in Long Term Dementia Care‘. This project aims to highlight some of the major steps forward in long term residential dementia care, in selected aged care communities around the world, that are actively choosing to approach aged care in a forward-thinking and inspirational manner to empower residents. Everyone deserves to live an enabled life, no matter what their circumstances. It is up to all of us to actively participate in in a positive fashion, not only our own life but the lives of others.

Listen to Michelle Mason’s “Soul Purpose Program” Changing Lives of those with Dementia

This is a great program Michelle has developed to incorporate a holistic Spa Day approach for dementia residents and their caregivers to relax and connect. On the Alzheimer’s Speaks Radio show you will hear Michelle and some of her team members talk of their experience volunteering their time and talent and what they have gotten back in return by participating in the Soul Purpose Program. I think you will enjoy the program and learn simple things we can do as individual to engage with a person with dementia which will make not only their day, but your own.

We are going to have a follow-up program to have an open discussion about how to shift Care Culture and what are your ideas and how can you get your idea up and running. Please call in and participate with this open brain storming session scheduled for November 11th at 11am EST, 10am Central, and 8am PST. Here is the LINK TO IGNITE YOUR CARE CULTURE VISION